LeBron James is entering his 22nd season in the league and his accomplishments are historic and throughout his transcending journey he has earned the reputation as being one of the top three players in history.
Some even consider Bron the GOAT, but that wouldn’t necessarily be the majority opinion, as that debate has raged on for years.
Lakers owner Jeanie Buss has had a front row seat to the greatest players to ever grace an NBA court since she was a teenager running after her dad, Dr. Jerry Buss, who owned the Lakers when she was just a girl.
The hiring of JJ Redick also created some public backlash, because the perception is that he was hired because he is LeBron’s friend and podcast partner. The Lakers have given LeBron James everything he’s wanted, or at least tried their best, but Buss’ recent comments about the four-time NBA champion had social media fans coming for her head.
“I’m excited to see what our new coach, JJ Redick, has in store. It’s definitely gonna be an interesting season for sure. I mean, LeBron, the way he played at the Olympics? He might be the greatest of all time.” Buss said.
Buss told no lies, and she’s seen the careers of everyone from Kareem Abdul-Jabar to James Worthy to Magic Johnson to Kobe Bryant and the great competitors the Lakers have faced over the years, from Larry Bird to Isiah Thomas. Emotional LeBron James fans, however, didn’t like the fact that Buss wasn’t jonesing and stanning as they do for LeBron.
She gave The King his props as one of the greatest, but it wasn’t enough for his fans base.
Lakers Fans Come For Owner Jeanie Buss
The Lakers owner’s use of the word “might” incited the ire of basketball fans who criticized Buss in the comment section of the NBA Central’s post on X (formerly Twitter).
One fan said, “Sh*t my work wife better be calling me the GOAT as well.”
Another fan got offended by the statement and advised James to request a trade, “Might? Request a trade right now.”
Another fan mentioned, ““Might” he literally is.”
There was a fan who said, “‘Might’ when he is already the greatest player of all time.“
Another NBA enthusiast accused “Jeanie Buss and Pelinka” of “destroying his chances of GOAT status by constantly giving him garbage teams he can’t compete with,” in his X comment.
Jeanie Buss Leaves Shaq Off Top 5 Most Important Lakers List
Back in July of 2021, Buss slightly offended one of her good friends and former GOATs Shaquille’ O’Neal, when she excluded him from her “Top Five Most Important Lakers” list. She had the late Kobe Bryant first, followed by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, LeBron James, Magic Johnson and Phil Jackson.
On his Instagram account under the post of Jeanie’s top 5 most important Lakers Shaq commented “whyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy.” The next picture in the carousel was a shocked or confused face from Shaq, reacting to the list.
The post surfaced again in 2023, and the pain probably hurt the same for Shaq, who responded with grace when the list first dropped.
“I love Jeanie Buss. I have never, would never say anything negative about Jeanie Buss,” Shaq said. “She gave me $120 million, $100 million, another $80 million. I would never, ever in my life say anything negative about Jeanie Buss and the Buss family. That is her opinion. I respect her opinion … Look, I’m not mad about that. Listen, she’s Jeanie Buss, that’s her opinion. If you ask other people, the names will vary.
“At 49, I’m a lot more peaceful than I was. If I was 29, I would say, ‘Hold on, LeBron’s only been there 720 days. How you gonna put him before me?’ But look, I’m 49, I respect people’s opinions,” he added.
Under the circumstances, Bron shouldn’t feel too bad about what Buss said. She has to be respectful to the greats who preceded him. She also boosted James on her most important list over Shaq who won three rings in L.A. with Kobe.
NBA GOAT Debate Rages On, Lakers Owner Jeanie Buss Catches A Stray
At 39 years old, James no longer dominates the league, and while he holds the title of all-time point leader, has won four NBA championships, four NBA MVP awards, and four NBA Finals MVP awards, and has been selected for the All-Star game 20 times, he’s not a hands-down choice for No. 1 greatest of all-time.
Basketball didn’t begin in 2003. Kobe has more championships, and so do Magic Johnson and Kareem, who was the all-time scoring leader until recently.
Michael Jordan, if you took a poll of informed neutral fans, would probably still hold a significant edge over LeBron in the GOAT argument.
Despite being close to turning 40 in December, James is still among the league’s best players. Recently, James was honored as the 2024 Paris Olympics MVP after leading Team USA and securing his third gold medal. James also signed a contract extension during the offseason and looks forward to making history when he and Bronny take the floor together for the first time.
Buss isn’t wrong. LeBron might be the greatest ever, but that’s not written in stone, and you will get as much feedback against him being the GOAT as you will in his favor. She has seen and forgotten more basketball than all of these opinionated computer junkies combined.
Of course, Lakers fans want to hear Buss say LeBron is the greatest ever, but he’s not even considered a top 3 Lakers player of all-time, and her history with the team has earned her the right to give an opinion on such matters.
